Recently, I’ve been in New York a lot. First, I was at the Revelry Buyers Club with Julia Swensen, and Ian Kielty was at the first Hall of Flowers in New York.
Something struck me immediately: I saw a lot of familiar faces from the West Coast and the Midwest. These are people who are now working full-time in New York cannabis.
What’s going on? Well, New York is stealing your people.
The big New York opportunity
Let me break down what we’re seeing.
Earlier this year, New York hit a $200 million-plus sales month. If that growth holds, we’re looking at a $2.5 to $3 billion annual market.
New York is attracting everybody’s attention. It may be the last time under the current state-run adult-use model that we’re going to see a market have the potential to hit $5 billion, getting there from almost nothing over a four or five-year period.
Because of that trajectory, New York’s job growth soared 209% in 2024, higher than any other state, and that growth is expected to increase in 2025 and 2026.
New York’s unique cannabis market structure
New York’s market is fundamentally different. Yes, there are some original medical operators and MSOs present, but based on the regulations, the majority of operators are small businesses – single-store retailers, small processing licenses, and independent brands. In NY, you’re prohibited from being a vertical operator.
What does that mean? You have a bunch of smaller companies that have to build teams from scratch.
Right now, there are more brands for sale in New York than there are retail stores open.
While we’ll probably see 200-250 retail doors open this year and another 150-200 next year, the retail infrastructure is still catching up.
New York is set up to be competitive, but the size and licensing structure provide an opportunity for the best operators to be successful. This is an opportunity for seasoned operators rich with years of experience navigating highly competitive markets and regulations to start fresh and hit the ground running.
– James Girsdansky, Operating Partner, Green House Group
Capital and expertise converge
New York is the wealthiest city in the world in terms of access to capital.
Even though institutional capital remains on the sidelines until rescheduling occurs, there are a lot of independently wealthy people who, if they can figure out real estate in New York, probably have access to capital. Money is being deployed in the industry.
Here’s what makes this moment special: New York is coming of age at a time when there is an experienced labor force in cannabis that actually knows how to do the job.
450,000-plus people are currently working in cannabis nationwide. The operators in New York have the benefit of being able to recruit somebody who knows:
- How to run multiple retail stores
- How to run a lab efficiently
- How to grow cannabis indoors
- How to use marketing to support wholesale revenue growth
California gave us the blueprint, but New York is the blank canvas. New York’s cannabis market is unlike anywhere else – it blends cultural influence, diversity, and scale. The consumer base here is sophisticated and trend-driven. The energy is fast-paced and entrepreneurial. What excites me most is that brands have the chance to shape a cultural movement that will ripple nationally and globally. Plus, unlike California and most other more mature cannabis markets, New York has credit laws in place that make it a safer, more stable market to operate in.
– Sabrina Wheeler, Founder, Green Haus
The poaching phenomenon
FlowerHire is seeing that operators in New York want to poach talent.
They want to bring people in who:
- Can hit the ground running
- Know how to do the job they’re being hired for
- Can bring their talents to the New York market
As a result, there are a lot of talent imports.
Attention New York folks: Don’t let this discourage you from working in NY cannabis! Most of the people working in the cannabis industry in New York are from New York, and they have great opportunities for fast-track career growth, especially in rural areas.
That’s still very much available for people to get to work in this industry in New York, where you can get a job and work your way up very quickly through hard work and being a good employee.
Why leadership experience matters
New York operators want to prepare their businesses to be resilient, to stand the test of time against competition that’s inevitably coming.
Experienced cannabis leaders understand how to execute and take action on industry-specific challenges.
With challenges that can seriously affect profitability, like regulations and taxation, New York businesses are looking for folks with previous experience handling these challenges.
Experienced leaders can hit the ground running and deploy processes, systems, and playbooks that already exist from their previous lessons learned in adult-use markets like California, Massachusetts, and Michigan.
I’m from New Jersey and lived in NYC before moving back to Los Angeles in 2017 to launch Miss Grass. At the time, California was the only cannabis market online in a meaningful way. Post-COVID, after shutting down our Venice office and expanding the brand beyond California, I could finally justify moving back. Now, with New York’s cannabis market live and evolving fast, it feels like the most dynamic place to build. New York has always been where brands are built.
–Kate Miller, Co-Founder and CEO, Miss Grass
The candidate perspective
On the candidate side, there are a lot of East Coasters who work in cannabis but had to go to Colorado, California, or the West Coast just to get into this industry.
They’re excited to come home as conquering heroes, running some of the early leaders in the New York market.
There’s no better place for them to be than New York right now. It’s the only place to experience a market that’s growing from $2 billion to $5 billion in revenue over the next 24 months. That’s a compelling story for candidates who normally wouldn’t be interested in relocating.
What makes New York so compelling is its authenticity – and the people behind it. This market is being built by a community that shows up every day with heart, grit, and a deep sense of purpose. I feel incredibly grateful to have had the chance to learn, build, and dream alongside those shaping cannabis in a way that could only happen here.
– Kathleen Hegedus, Regional Director of Sales – East, Kiva Brands
A national labor market
The bottom line is, yes, New York is coming for your people. It’s not just about the competitor around the corner anymore. Cannabis is now a national labor market.
New York is positioned as the most attractive destination for cannabis talent in 2025 and 2026.
New York represents an opportunity that’s hard to match anywhere else in the country right now.
The growth trajectory, the market structure, the capital availability, and the chance to build something from the ground up in one of the world’s most important cities – that’s a powerful recruitment pitch.
Your people are getting those calls. The question is: what are you doing to keep them?
FlowerHire helps cannabis organizations develop a solid retention strategy that works and hire the right people for your team. Reach out to a FlowerHire recruiter.
